Improvement in the mode of constructing the power-loom so as to adapt it to the weaving



UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

ERAsTUS E. BieELow, or LANCASTER, MASSACHUSETTS.

IMPROVEMENT IN THE MODE OF CONSTRUCTING THE POWER-LOOM S0 AS TO ADAPTITTO THE WEAVING 0F FIGURED COUNTERPANES AND OTHER ARTICLES.

I Specification forming part of Letters Patent No. 1,561, dated April24, 1840.

To aZZ whom it may concern):

Be it known that I, ERAsTUs B. BIGELOW, of Lancaster, in the countyofWorcester and State of Massachusetts, have invented a new and ImprovedMode of Constructing the Power-Loom, by which improvements it is adaptedto the Weaving of igured counterpanes and to other articles of a similarcharacter; and I do hereby declare that the following is a full andexact ,description thereof.

My improvements consist, principally, in the manner inwhich the shuttlesare thrown, the manner of raising and depressing the shuttle-boxes, andthe manner in which the picker is relieved from the shuttle.

In throwing the shuttles I cause the two picker-staves to operatesimultaneously, so that the shuttle may be thrown from whichever of theboxes is presented to their action. This I effect by the use of onepicker-treadle only, which is acted upon by a cam-ball in the usual wayof working such treadles. From this treadle two bands are extended andpass around the two picker-pulleys in such manner that when the treadleis depressed both the picker-staves will be set in action at the samemoment. By this arrangement two or more shuttles may be successivelythrown from the same end of the loom by the action of one treadle. l

The shuttle-boxes are raised and lowered in the following manner: Ashaft extends along under the race-beam from one shuttle-box to theother and carries pinions which take into racks attached to theshuttle-boxes. It will be manifest, therefore, that by causing thisshaft to revolve the shuttle -boxes may be raised. The revolving of thisshaft is effected by the action of a spiral or other spring, one end ofwhich is attached to the frame of the loom at its back, and said springextends forward toward the lathe. From this forward end a band attachedto it passes round guidepulleys, the situation of which Will be shown`inthe accompanying drawings, and also round a pulley upon the abovenamedshaft, to which latter said band is attached. The action of the springby its drawing upon the band will cause the pinion-shaft to revolve, andwill consequently raise the shuttle-boxes. Should this spring be thrownout of action Vand the band by which the shuttle-boxes are raised berelaxed, they Will then descend by their own gravity. To takeoff thetension of the spring, there is a cam upon the main shaft of theloom,which cam, as the shaft revolves, depresses a treadle, to the endof which a band is attached which operates in such a Way as to relievethe shuttle-boxes from the action of the spring, and they then descend.

In relieving the picker from the point of theshuttle I make use of theprotection-rod constituting a part of the apparatus employed in theordinary power-loom for stopping the loom when the shuttle does notarrive home in the shuttle-box. From the protection-rod, which extendsalong below the shuttle-boxes, Iallow a small arm or finger to descend,which finger as the latter comes up toward the breast-beam strikesagainst a stop or pin attached for that purpose to the frame= of theloom, causing the protection-rod -to rock or revolve to a shortdistance. This gives motion to two arms, which extend out from theextreme ends of the protection-rod opposite to the outer ends of each ofthe shuttle-boxes. From these arms motion is communicated to a lever,which works on a fulcrum over the outer ends of each of theshuttle-boxes, said arms being connected to the levers by rods or Wires.By depressing the outer ends of these levers their inner ends areraised, and to these ends are appended rods, which carry pieces of woodor metal, which when down rest on and embrace the picker-rod, and inthat position they serve. to hold the picker at a short distance fromthe end of the shuttle-box and to stop the shuttle. The pickel' is thenremoved from the point of the shuttle by the raising of the lever, thepicker being made to pass home to the end ofthe box, thus leaving theshuttle and shuttle-box free to be raised or lowered withoutobstruction, the picker being also ready again to act on a shuttle.

Having thus given a general description of myimprovements, I now proceedto exemplify the same by reference to the accompanying drawings.

Figure 1 is a front view in perspective of my improved counterpanepower-loom, and Fig. 2 a back view of one end of one of theshuttle-boxes, this being drawn for the purpose of showing theparticular construction and arrangement of this part of the machinery,which could not be exhibited in the front View.

In Fig. l the breast-beam is not represented7 it being removed for thepurpose of showing the lathe and the parts connected therewith the moredistinctly. f

The .Iacquard apparatus, which is employed to regulate the ligure and isperfectly well known, being in general use, I also use as heretoforeconstructed; but it is not represented in the drawings, it not beingdeemed necessary to describe it; butr I have fully shown those partswhich constitute my improvements.

A A are the picker-staves, and B the picker-treadle. D is the cam-ballfor working this treadle, operating in the usual manner.

E E are two straps, which are attached to the picker-treadle. Thesestraps pass over the pulleys F F, and are attached by their outer endsto the pulleys G G, which carry the staves A A, and these areconsequently acted upon simultaneously. y

The rods or staves A A serve to cause the pickers to pass home when thepieces of wood, duc., above referred to are raised. These rods are drawntoward the outer ends of the shuttie-boxes bythe action ofthe spiralsprings C C, the use of which will more fully appear when describing theparts shown in Fig. 2.

The following'is the arrangement devised by me for raising anddepressing the shuttleboxes: A shaft H I-I is made to extend along underthe race-beam, and this shaft carries the pinions I'I, which take intovertical racks .I J, attached to the'shuttle-boxes. I sometimes use asingle rack affixed at the middle of each box, but I prefer the placingof a rack and pinion at each end of each box, as shown in the drawings.There is a pulley L on the shaft H, and this shaft is made to revolve bymeans of'a band K,one end of which is attached to and laps around thesaid pulley. The band K passes thence around pulleys a a', thepulleyabeingattached to theframe and the pulley d either to the frame orto th e floor. The spiral spring M, aflixed to the back of the loom,draws on the band K, attached to its fore end, so as to cause the pulleyL and the shaft H to revolve and raise the shuttle-boxes. IVhen thespiral spring M is relieved from its action on the band K, theshuttle-boxes will descend by their own gravity. When this is to takeplace, the tension of the spring is taken off by the action of the camN, placed on the main shaft of the loom, which cam is so formed as todepress the treadle O, which,

' drawing on the part P of the band K, takes off the action of thespiral spring therefrom, and the shuttle-boxes descend.

The protection-rod a a and its appendages used for stopping the loomwhen the shuttle does not arrive home are employed by me in the ordinaryway; but I also make use of this protection-rod for the purpose ofrelieving the shuttle from the picker in the following manner: R is anarm or finger, which is affixed toanddescendsfromtheprotection-rod, andthis, as the lathe approaches the breastbeam, strikes against the stopS', attached Y to the frame of the loom, and causes a partial revolutionof the protection-rod. T T are arms on its extreme ends, which arms areconnected to two vibrating levers U U by a rod z c, which work ou fulcraon the ends of the lathe above the shuttle-box. Fig. 2 is a back view ofthe outer end of one of the shuttle-boxes, showing the manner in whichthe lever U and its appendages operate. The piece of wood or metal V,which is raised and lowered by the action of the lever` U and which isrepresented as resting on the picker W, will, when the inner end of theleverU is down, rest upon the picker-rod X, where it serves to arrestthe picker and stop the shuttle. When .thev lever U is raised, thepicker is thereby allowed to pass home, and is consequently removed fromthe point of the shuttle, and this and the shuttle-box are left free tobe raised or lowered. The rod A bears against the pin b, projecting fromthe picker, and serves to remove it from the shuttle when the piece V israised. The rods c c support the pin b and serve as guides to the rod A.The cord d connects the upper end of the rod A to the upper end of thestave A in order that the stave may by its mot-ion move the rod also.

I willl here remark that a weight may be substituted for the spiral orother spring M, that the shuttle-boxes may be raised by springs placedimmediately under them, and that the tensionof such springs maybe takenoff by means analogous to those described; but it will be manifest toevery competent machinist that any such variation of the respectiveparts will not substantially change the character of my invention. Themanner of constructing and arranging the. apparatus as set forth by meis that which I have deemed the best in practice.

Having thus fully described the nature of my improvements and shown themanner in which I carry the same into operation, what I claim asconstituting mv invention, and'desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-

1. The manner in which the picker-staves are operated upon by a singletreadle so as to act simultaneously, whereby two or more shuttles may bethrown successively from the same shuttle-box, if required, theapparatus therefor being constructed substantially as set forth.

2. The raising of the shuttle-boxes by the action of a spring orsprings, weight or weights, and the allowing them to descend by theirown gravity when the tension of the spring or force of the weight istaken olf, the same being effected in the manner described, or in anyother analogous thereto.

3. The relieving of the shuttle from the picker by means of an apparatusconstructed and operating as herein set forth--that is to say, bythecombined action of the levers U, the pieces V, and the rods A',connected and operating substantially as described.

ERASTUS B. BIGrELOW.` Witnesses:

THos. P. JONES, J As. HERRoN.

